NOTE:  As provided in LFC policy, this report is intended only for use by the standing finance committees of the legislature.  The Legislative Finance Committee does not assume responsibility for the accuracy of the information in this report when used for other purposes.

 

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F I S C A L   I M P A C T   R E P O R T

 

 

 

SPONSOR:

Lundstrom

 

DATE TYPED:

02/18/03

 

HB

202/aHENRC/aHJC

 

SHORT TITLE:

Amend Subdivision Regulations

 

SB

 

 

 

ANALYST:

Chabot

 

APPROPRIATION

 

Appropriation Contained

Estimated Additional Impact

Recurring

or Non-Rec

Fund

Affected

FY03

FY04

FY03

FY04

 

 

 

NFI

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)

 

SOURCES OF INFORMATION

 

LFC Files

 

Responses Received From

 

Department of Finance and Administration

Regulation and Licensing Department

 

SUMMARY

 

     Synopsis of HJC Amendment

 

The House Judiciary Committee amendment strikes the Energy and Natural Resources Committee amendment 2.  In its place, it inserts language requiring all costs associated with metering of domestic wells to be the responsibility of the person contracting for the drilling of the well.  The owner of the domestic well permit must submit readings on a biannual basis, metering requirements shall be part of the final conditions of approval of subdivision by the county or municipality and, if there is overuse, a fine may be imposed.

 

In addition, it deletes prohibitions on high-water use plants and adds the requirement for “low-water use landscaping and efficient irrigation systems based on xeriscape principles and regulation of high-water use landscaping.”

 

     Synopsis of HENRC Amendment

 

The House Energy and Natural Resources Committee amendment removes the requirement for water use efficiency requirements for plumbing and architectural design components in Section 3-19-6 NMSA 1978 for municipal and Section 47-6-9 NMSA for county subdivision regulations.

 

TECHNICAL ISSUES

 

Item 2 in the House Energy and Natural Resources Committee report dated February 5, 2003 should be changed to read: “On  Page 6, strike lines 2 and 3 in their entirety.”

 

     Synopsis of Original Bill

 

House Bill 202 amends Section 3-19-6 NMSA 1978 (municipalities) and Section 47-6-9 NMSA 1978 (counties) concerning subdivision regulations to include water conservation measures.  Under this bill, subdivision regulations shall include the following conservation measures:  metering and accounting of water use of private wells, drought-tolerant landscaping; prohibition of high-water use landscape plants and water use efficiency requirements for plumbing and architectural design.

 

     Significant Issues

 

New Mexico has a desert climate and receives an average of 10 inches or less precipitation annually.  With a growing population, there are concerns about the ability of water resources to keep up with demand.  Many organizations, such as 1000 Friends of New Mexico, have emphasized the need to use water conservation measures to stretch our water resources.  This bill would require that municipalities and counties consider water conservation measures through their subdivision regulations.  Responding state agencies did not provide an estimate of how much additional water could be saved by requiring water conservation measures.  However, 1000 Friends of New Mexico estimates that xeriscaping can reduce a households water use by 50 percent, low-flow toilets and showerheads and clothes washers by another 20 percent.  Other water savings could result from new building designs and construction.

 

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS

 

There is no direct fiscal impact resulting from this bill.  However, new subdivision regulations could result in costs to homeowners and developers.

 

POSSIBLE QUESTIONS

 

  1. How long do municipalities and counties have to adopt new regulations on water conservation?
  2. Are existing residences grandfathered from complying with the new requirements?
  3. How much water could be saved from adopting these requirements?

 

GAC/njw:sb:prr